Ekiti workers jubilate over payment of 70,000 new minimum wage

Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Oyebanji, on Monday, told workers in the state to thank President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for enabling the state to pay the new minimum wage to its workforce.

The governor made this statement when hundreds of civil servants stormed his office in Ado-Ekiti, dancing and singing in appreciation of the payment of the new minimum wage, as reflected in their December salary, which was paid on the same day.

Governor Oyebanji said the minimum wage was made possible because of President Tinubu’s reforms, which allocated more funds to the states.

He explained that, but for the President’s reforms, which provided additional funds to states, many state governments would not have been able to pay the minimum wage.

The governor also hinted at the possibility of increasing the minimum wage once the state receives more resources.

According to him, “Honestly, I don’t think you should thank me. We have not done anything unusual. You worked hard and got paid by the government. But I also thank you for showing appreciation. Thank God, and after God, the only person you should thank is President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

“I’m saying this because what you are seeing today is the outcome of the reforms he embarked on.

“You know, states would not have been able to pay the minimum wage if there had not been a remarkable improvement in our allocation. When he embarked on the reforms, he did so with the understanding that it may be painful initially, but in the end, it would be in the interest of all of us.

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“My plea to you is to support the President. It can get better because N70,000 is just the minimum; we can go beyond it if our situation improves. I know that by the time all these reforms start to bear fruit, there will be a significant increase in what comes to the states, and we can come to you and say, ‘Yes, we can afford to add more.’

“I thank President Bola Tinubu for the courage and boldness to walk a lonely path. When he embarked on the reforms, most people didn’t believe in him. But because he is a future-thinking leader, he has been able to achieve more.

“My advice to workers is that we should remain steadfast, be patient, and cooperate with the government. We should also educate others on the usefulness of these reforms to our survival as a nation.”

Earlier, the workers, led to the governor’s office by some Permanent Secretaries, thanked the governor for fulfilling his promise to ensure they received a fair deal in the minimum wage payment.

Specifically, the Permanent Secretaries among them thanked the governor for including them in the new wage, thereby ending several years of exclusion from the minimum wage arrangement.

According to them, this development confirmed Governor Oyebanji’s promise to ensure that every category of workers benefits from the new minimum wage.

It is recalled that Governor Oyebanji had last month announced that the new minimum wage would become effective in the state by December 1. Workers in the state started receiving bank alerts for the December salaries on Tuesday.